The present invention relates primarily to shelving and in particular to that type of shelving where the horizontal shelves and the vertical support members are fastened together with interlocking slot-to-slot connections.
It is well known in the prior art to angularly interconnect planar members with interlocking slots in both of the members. This technique has been applied in the fabrication of honeycomb structures and in assembling shelving and furniture, to cite only a few examples. In the later case, U.S. Pat. No. 5,855,175 to Peter B. Forbes for Shelving For CDs and Cassettes and U.S. Pat. No. 4,832,421 to Donald I. Shoffuer for Ready-To-Assemble Cabinet are exemplary.
As illustrated in the above cited U.S. Patents, slot-to-slot interconnections are common expedients for quickly connecting shelving to a support member, or interconnecting other types of planar objects. The difficulty encountered when this type of connection is employed on a load-bearing shelf, for example, is that the slotted portion of the shelf that embraces the sides of the vertical support member is itself without support. Consequently, when the shelf is loaded with books or other heavy objects the portion of the shelf that is proximate the unsupported sides of a slot tends to droop and bend.
Another difficulty with shelving of the type referred to is the typical predominance of rectangular elements and an absence of triangular elements within the structure that are necessary to create rigidity and stability.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a slot-to-slot interconnecting shelving assembly that contains one or more triangular bracing elements that are themselves interconnected to the horizontal shelving units and the vertical support units by means of slot type connections.
Another object of the invention is to provide a general use slot-to-slot interconnection that will exhibit structural support for a load-bearing member along the entire length of a slot formed in that member.